Derrick Bines, PhD(He/Him/His)

Dr. Bines works primarily with Black adults and others from marginalized communities who are navigating the weight of living in systems that were not designed with them in mind. His clients often come in carrying racialized stress, anxiety, depression, and questions about identity alongside the everyday pressures of relationships, career transitions, family dynamics, and figuring out who they are and want to become. He has a particular interest in working with men, and in helping people develop self-compassion and confidence as tools for sustainable change.

His therapeutic approach is relational and integrative, rooted in the conviction that a person’s inner life cannot be understood apart from the cultural, social, and systemic forces surrounding them. Dr. Bines draws on Interpersonal Process Therapy, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, and other evidence-informed frameworks. Not as a fixed protocol, but as a flexible set of tools he tailors to each client’s needs. The work focuses on building genuine insight into patterns of thought, feeling, and behavior, understanding where those patterns come from, and creating real openings for change.

Dr. Bines holds a PhD in Counseling Psychology and an MS in Counseling, Family, and Human Services from the University of Oregon, and a BA in Sociology from California State University, Fullerton. He completed his predoctoral internship and postdoctoral training at UC Berkeley’s Counseling and Psychological Services, and currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Counseling at San Francisco State University. His academic and clinical work are mutually informed by the same commitments that shape his scholarship show up in how he sits with clients.